‘47 Years Later, the Palisades Disappeared Overnight’
Mike Davidson:
I grew up on Iliff Street, right in the middle of the ashes that
up until a few nights ago, was a sunkissed neighborhood known as
Pacific Palisades.
It was 1978, and I remember my dad climbing up on our roof with a
garden hose. Every couple of hours, he would wet the house down,
top-to-bottom, and everything surrounding it. I don’t remember
everybody doing this, but my Dad is a Meteorologist, and back then
he worked at the SCAQMD, the regional agency charged with
studying, regulating, and improving air quality in Los Angeles,
Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. Because of his
specific remit and where we lived, he had a deep understanding of
the Santa Ana winds and their effect on the Palisades.
When my dad explained what he was doing, he would point northeast
to the hills behind us and tell us that if the winds didn’t die
down, the fire miles in the distance would come towards our tiny
little house and there would be trouble. As a small child, I don’t
actually remember being scared about any of this. Every year there
was a fire, the smoke was always so far away and so barely visible
that it just seemed like anything else in life at the time. And
besides, dads are superheroes to their children, so of course
there was no danger.
What a remarkable piece of writing this is. Part memoir, part call to action, entirely engaging.
★
Mike Davidson:
I grew up on Iliff Street, right in the middle of the ashes that
up until a few nights ago, was a sunkissed neighborhood known as
Pacific Palisades.
It was 1978, and I remember my dad climbing up on our roof with a
garden hose. Every couple of hours, he would wet the house down,
top-to-bottom, and everything surrounding it. I don’t remember
everybody doing this, but my Dad is a Meteorologist, and back then
he worked at the SCAQMD, the regional agency charged with
studying, regulating, and improving air quality in Los Angeles,
Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. Because of his
specific remit and where we lived, he had a deep understanding of
the Santa Ana winds and their effect on the Palisades.
When my dad explained what he was doing, he would point northeast
to the hills behind us and tell us that if the winds didn’t die
down, the fire miles in the distance would come towards our tiny
little house and there would be trouble. As a small child, I don’t
actually remember being scared about any of this. Every year there
was a fire, the smoke was always so far away and so barely visible
that it just seemed like anything else in life at the time. And
besides, dads are superheroes to their children, so of course
there was no danger.
What a remarkable piece of writing this is. Part memoir, part call to action, entirely engaging.